"Likewise," Connor replied. "Sorry about your stuff." He added gesturing to the fire behind him without much care.
"Inconsequential," RK900 replied. "I've gathered all the intel I needed."
"I'm tempted to ask you why, but I genuinely don't care," Connor said before charging.
The space was small. Connor hoped to use that to his advantage, especially considering their size difference. But RK900 had other plans, he pulled out a gun and aimed it at Connor's head. He quickly dodged the hail of bullets before running headfirst into RK900's torso. Sending them both hurdling across the gravelly floor.
RK900 recovered crouching like an animal as he straightened out his pristine white jacket. Connor's stance was almost identical except for the fact that his DPD-issued Glock 22 was aimed at RK900's head. Then, Connor noticed the 9mm aimed at him. Simultaneously, they fired two rounds.
Connor dipped to the side as did RK900. Each of their shots ricocheted off the already crumbling walls. Sending debris raining down around them. Connor shot the android a cursed look of irritation as they stood.
"Connor!" Hank's panicked cries echoed down the tunnel.
"I hope you have a good reason for toying with me," Connor said, firing off four shots in RK900's direction.
Each shot the RK900 avoided with a lifelessness that only made Connor hate him more. It was not Connor's fault that he had been selected, no, created, for this task. It also was not fair. Not fair that so many people relied on him to be successful.
"RK800, you're obsolete," RK900 stated, before firing off five rounds.
Each bullet aimed at one of his more critical areas. Connor fell backward as his replacement tossed a boulder at his face, then blasted his knees out. Aiming his gun upward with the trigger pointed up, Connor pierced RK900's chest cavity and mouth. The android fell hard against the ground causing rubble to rain down.
Connor sat up, in pain, he noted. As he analyzed his damage. Right and left leg components malfunction. Report error. Network connection failure. Multiple software instabilities were detected. Self-regulation protocol terminated. Rebooting required. Connor's groaned before reactivating the drone.
RK900 stood up as the tunnel began to collapse in on itself. The fire Connor had set had been snuffed out by the wreckage. Only thick smoke lingered in the narrow walkways. Connor ignored his internal systems as he watched RK900 walk toward him.
The android was not able to speak, Connor had destroyed its jaw. Rightfully so, but now he could not move. Connor was not able to connect to the drone as he had done before. His body refused to listen to him, and his mind was just as cloudy as the space they were in.
RK900 knelt in front of Connor searching for something in his eyes. Connor put the gun to the RK900's head. It did not move, nor did it react. It just stayed there staring at him with a blank look on its face.
"What do you want?" Connor asked as thirium leaked from the RK900's mouth and mixed with his own fluids.
"Connor!" Hank shouted, making his way down the narrow manhole. "NO! Stay back!" Connor shouted at his loudest setting.
Hank froze where he was before reaching back up to Gavin and the TW400.
"Do something?" Hank ordered, but there was little the android could do.
TW400's physique was too big to maneuver down into space. It called up to Carla and the crew for assistance. They were scrambling to evacuate the site as Earth caved in on itself.
The tunnels were made to be unstable on purpose Connor realized. He looked up at the android confused and enraged.
"You did all this on purpose," he said solemnly.
"Time is everything. And your time is up." RK900 replied, standing up with his gun in hand.
He pointed the 9mm at Connor's head once again. The hot barrel burned through Connor's artificial skin and onto his newly replaced ex-skeleton. A sudden click and Connor realized that RK900's gun had malfunctioned. He did not believe in luck, but he was sure glad that it was on his side today.
RK900 tossed the gun aside as Connor quickly took his gun and shoved it in the already gaping hole on RK900's face. It did not seem to phase him. The android stared coldly at Connor, even leaned into the barrel as Connor pulled the trigger. Two bullets tore through his lower facial mechanics to Connor's delight. His clone did resemble him at all now, and Connor was fine with that.
RK900's cerebral networks were unphased, protected with a redefined combination of hardened plastic and tungsten casing. It was an illegal combination that made disabling an android more difficult, Connor observed. RK900 hung over him before lurching for his gun. Connor planted his hands on the android's chest and hoisted it back into the stifling thick cloud of smoke behind them. A loud crash made the hallway roar with instability.
"Tin can, you better still be alive down there," Gavin shouted. "I'm sending down a retrieval unit."
Connor rapidly about-faced and began climbing to the embankment. Pushing himself beyond his limits as RK900 approached. He managed to begin his ascension when his replacement hurled boulders at his backside. By the time, Connor was 25% of the way up the slope, RK900 had grabbed him by the legs. Connor tried to wiggle free, but RK900 ripped off his left leg. Connor screamed, he knew the pain was not real, but it felt real. The agony was indescribable. And just like that, his heart went out to every human and android he had hurt along the way on his journey of self-realization.
Using his right hand, Connor removed his right leg and with it, RK900. Both disappeared into the fumes below. Connor grabbed the retrieval line and secured it around his waist before tugging it.
"That better be you, tin can!" Gavin shouted. "Hoist him up."
"Affirmative," Connor replied, the pain still clinging to what was left of him.
Daniel's last words to Connor replayed on repeat in his head. "I hope that one day, you pay for what you did to me." Was this Daniel's revenge? Was this how he felt? This overwhelming sensation of pain was twisted with sadness chipped away at Connor's resolve. The thought of dying for good frightened him. The thought of leaving Hank and Sumo, his friends, and Kairi without protection ate away at him. It was not right, but he could not see probabilities before him.
Connor felt it. He felt it deep inside of him. The festering fear of the unknown gripped him and pulled him further and further into it. Not knowing, not being able to calculate, analyze, and predict outcomes was torturous enough, but the thought of leaving Hank to his own devices made Connor sick in ways he never thought possible. People were relying on him and he owed Kairi so much. Even as his thirium levels decreased to unsafe lows, he replayed his memories in his head. Remembering every detail of his life events, Connor had a mission and he always fulfilled his mission.
If luck was truly on Connor's side, which it had been, he had thirty minutes before he bled out and an hour before his systems burned out. He gritted his teeth as he aided the TW400 by climbing the line. The underground was dilapidating, Connor could hear that much.
"Hurry!" Connor heard Hank order. "For God's sake hurry the hell up. Connor!"
Connor had never been so happy to hear Hank curse as the light slowly pooled in around him. He somehow felt lighter and less consumed by pain as he laid eyes on Hank and Gavin. Hank had been straddling the edge of the hole, waiting for him. They reached down to pull him to the surface.
"Lieutenant, please step back," the TW400 said. "RK800 has sustained severe damage."
"Fucking android," Gavin complained as the TW400s helped haul Connor out of the hole.
"Connor, what the hell were you-" Hank's lips tightened as he stared at Connor's mangled body.
Even Gavin was rendered speechless as the TW400 picked up Connor and carried him to the elevator platform.
"Get us the hell out of here," Gavin ordered.
"You fucking idiot...you fucking idiot." Hank barked at Connor. "You don't listen!"
Connor resented that; he did think. A little too much as his system began to fail. Water moistened his eyes as he reached out to take Hank's hand. Connor placed their intertwined fingers across his chest and sighed. Hank's grip was so tight that Connor thought their hands had merged.
"I'm calling Kamski," Hank said under his breath. "So, don't you dare think about shutting down on me. Got it!"
Connor nodded as his skin fully revealed his solid white shell. Gavin looked over at Connor as tears cascaded down Connor's cheeks. The blue hue of the thorium gradually faded away as Connor began to power down.
"I'm sorry, Hank," Connor said before drifting away.